By the margin, willow-veil’d
Slide the heavy barges trail’d
By slow horses; and unhail’d ------------This only has seven syllables instead of eight
The Shallop flitteth silken-sail’d
This is a good example of how Tennyson tries to cover up his mistakes. The faulty line just does not roll off the tongue like all of the other lines. This is a type of poem which tells a story within a poem, it is called a ‘ballad.’ Overall, Tennyson has stuck very well to his overall plot of the poem.
One thing I would criticise about this poem is that Tennyson leaves his readers in a maddening suspense. The whole ballad is a mystery to its readers. We do not know why she is in the tower, how she is fed, what is the curse and many other questions which are not answered throughout the whole poem. This mystery adds a sense of adventure and surprise to the poem. We wait to hear more, but still we are left in the dark. I feel Tennyson should lighten his poem up and answer some unanswered questions. The suspense he has lent us only adds to the eerie atmosphere this poem already possesses.
The atmosphere in this poem is very different compared to modern day poems. It is mysterious and gloomy and makes me feel jumpy. No-one knows the Lady of Shalott, only local farmers have heard her sing:
‘Hear a song that echoes clearly’
The Death of the Lady increases the gloom lingering in the poem. It makes us feel depressed. The only light which enters the poem is in Part 3 of the poem where Sir Lancelot enters the scene. Sir Lancelot is a mythical knight alongside King Arthur and ‘The Knights of the Round Table.’ The poem is set in Arthurian times. We know little today about the legendary times of King Arthur. The whole atmosphere changes from Dark to Light at the entrance of Sir Lancelot.
His broad clear brow in sunlight glow’d;---------------------------
On burnish’d hooves his war-horse trode;----------------------
From Underneath his helmet flow’d------------------------------
his coal-black curls as on he rode,-------------------------------
As he rode down to Camelot.-------------------------------------
Sir Lancelot was meant to be an idle in the days of King Arthur. He was meant to inspire rich nobles, lords and even Kings. For the Lady of Shalott to actually see Sir Lancelot was a miracle. She could not resist the earge to break the curse and see Sir Lancelot in person. When Lancelot found her dead on the river bank, he took pity on her.u
